Starred Review for Kirkus Reviews (Thu Apr 28 00:00:00 CDT 2022)

Reinvention is the name of the game for two blobs of clay.A blue-eyed gray blob and a brown-eyed brown blob sit side by side, unsure as to what's going to happen next. The gray anticipates an adventure, while the brown appears apprehensive. A pair of hands descends, and soon, amid a flurry of squishing and prodding and poking and sculpting, a handsome gray wolf and a stately brown owl emerge. The hands disappear, leaving the friends to their own devices. The owl is pleased, but the wolf convinces it that the best is yet to come. An ear pulled here and an extra eye placed there, and before you can shake a carving stick, a spurt of frenetic self-exploration—expressed as a tangled black scribble—reveals a succession of smug hybrid beasts. After all, the opportunity to become a "pig-e-phant" doesn't come around every day. But the sound of approaching footsteps panics the pair of Picassos. How are they going to "fix [them]selves" on time? Soon a hippopotamus and peacock are staring bug-eyed at a returning pair of astonished hands. The creative naiveté of the "clay mates" is perfectly captured by Petty's feisty, spot-on dialogue: "This was your idea…and it was a BAD one." Eldridge's endearing sculpted images are photographed against the stark white background of an artist's work table to great effect. The dynamic interaction between the characters invites readers to take risks, push boundaries, and have a little unscripted fun of their own. (Picture book. 5-8)

Horn Book

Two blobs of clay--one gray, one brown--are pleased when an artist molds them into a wolf and an owl, respectively. Unfortunately, they get carried away with self-alterations while the artist is away ("I'm an alien!"; "I'm a Cyclops!"); can they resume their original forms before she returns? The grand concept is relayed in crisp color photos of the outlandishly morphing critters.

Kirkus Reviews (Fri Oct 04 00:00:00 CDT 2024)

Reinvention is the name of the game for two blobs of clay.A blue-eyed gray blob and a brown-eyed brown blob sit side by side, unsure as to what's going to happen next. The gray anticipates an adventure, while the brown appears apprehensive. A pair of hands descends, and soon, amid a flurry of squishing and prodding and poking and sculpting, a handsome gray wolf and a stately brown owl emerge. The hands disappear, leaving the friends to their own devices. The owl is pleased, but the wolf convinces it that the best is yet to come. An ear pulled here and an extra eye placed there, and before you can shake a carving stick, a spurt of frenetic self-exploration—expressed as a tangled black scribble—reveals a succession of smug hybrid beasts. After all, the opportunity to become a "pig-e-phant" doesn't come around every day. But the sound of approaching footsteps panics the pair of Picassos. How are they going to "fix [them]selves" on time? Soon a hippopotamus and peacock are staring bug-eyed at a returning pair of astonished hands. The creative naiveté of the "clay mates" is perfectly captured by Petty's feisty, spot-on dialogue: "This was your idea…and it was a BAD one." Eldridge's endearing sculpted images are photographed against the stark white background of an artist's work table to great effect. The dynamic interaction between the characters invites readers to take risks, push boundaries, and have a little unscripted fun of their own. (Picture book. 5-8)

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

Two lumps of clay-one gray, one brown, both with big, googly eyes-sit on an artist-s worktable, waiting to find out what they-re going to become. -Probably something wonderful,- says the gray lump. Human hands painstakingly sculpt them into a wolf and an owl (Owl: -That took a really long time-; Wolf: -And it was sooooo boring-), then depart, at which point the creations realize that they don-t need someone else to give shape to their imaginations. The gray clay reshapes itself into a short-snouted -pig-e-elephant- while the brown clay goes from being a giant peanut to a splendid peacock; in another sequence, they see who can transform into the flattest or smallest species. Composed of photographs arranged in comics-style panels, this book initially seems like an odd duck: a story about claymation, minus the animation? But it works: Petty-s (I Don-t Want to Be Big) punchy, dialogue-only narrative and newcomer Eldridge-s expressive sculpture give these clay buddies a surplus of personality-their self-reinventions and attempts at one-upmanship are a giddy mix of naive and naughty. Ages 4-8. Author-s agent: Jennifer Rofé, Andrea Brown Literary. Illustrator-s agent: Lori Kilkelly, Rodeen Literary Management. (June)